Planning is essential for the firms management to address the unavoidable problem: no one knows what will happen in the future. Managers, however, can reduce the risks that arise from uncertainty by having contingency plans that enable the firm to respond proactively to future difficulties. Planning for them involves people in many positions in the organization. Planning steps include gathering information about sales, analyzing historical data, making projections of future revenues, estimating costs, and others.

Initial Post

Think of yourself in a future position in a hypothetical manufacturing firm that produces baked cookies. In which planning steps or flow would your position contribute to the most, and why? How can you contribute? How would your position interact with other functional areas, such as sales and HR?